Kelli Estes

The Girl Who Wrote in Silk Kelli Estes

Inara Erickson explores her familys estate on Orcas Island, Washington, and finds a perfectly preserved and meticulously detailed embroidered silk sleeve hidden under a loose tread on the stairs. She wonders how it came to be there, and enlists the help of Daniel Chin, a young professor of Asian studies. Washed up on Orcas Island in 1886, Mei Lien is the lone survivor of a cruel purge of the Chinese from Seattle. She finds refuge and kindness with Joseph McElroy, and though she begins a life with him, she is determined to tell her heartbreaking story the only way she knows how: by embroidering it, using the silk and thread Joseph has lovingly given her. Inaras research leads her to a shameful discovery that could destroy her family and her newfound relationship with Daniel. She is faced with a terrible choice: bring dishonor to her family by telling the truth, or tell no one and dishonor not only Mei Lien, the brave young woman to whom she feels so connected, but also her love for Daniel.